Air preheater mounting



July 4, 1944.

' P. H. KARLSSON 2,352,717

AIR PREHEATER MOUNTING Filed Dec. 24, 1941 I IN V EN TOR. Per fizlmer fiarlsson Patented July 4, 1944 AIR PREHEATER MOUNTING Per Hilmer Karlsson, Wellsville, N. Y., assignor to The Air Preheater Corporation, New York,

Application December 24, 1941, Serial No. 424,256

1 Claim.

The present invention relates to improvements in heat exchange apparatus and particularly to minimizing stresses on their casings and the supporting structures therefor due to unequal expansion when the apparatus becomes heated.

In many heat exchange devices the enclosing casing or the structural steel work which supports the latter becomes subjected to strains because of unequal expansion or contraction, particularly in regenerative air preheaters of the rotary type where heating gases and relatively cooler air to be heated pass in counterfiow relation in passages on opposite sides of a plane through the vertical axis of the apparatus. The present invention is directed to an arrangement minimizing such stresses while at the same time preventing undue movement of the apparatus with respect to the supporting framework.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a Ljungstrom regenerative air preheater installed in accordance with the present invention; and

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of part of Figure 1.

In the drawing, the numeral l designates the housing of an air preheater of the Ljungstrom type having a cylindrical rotor carrying regenerative heating surface which firsts absorbs heat from the hot gases when passing through the gas side of the preheater and then imparts the heat to air passing to the air side as'the rotor is turned about its axis l4 by a motor operating through suitable reduction gearing. The inlet and outlet ducts for gas are designated 20 and 2| in Fig. l and those for air are numbered 22 and 23 respectively. Air to be preheated is supplied to the duct 22 through a conduit 32 by a blower fan (not shown) and is discharged from the preheater through the conduit 33 leading to the place of use while the heating gas enters the gas inlet duct 20 of the preheater from a conduit 30 and is discharged via the duct 2| into a conduit 3| leading to the stack.

Extending along opposite sides of the preheater casing are parallel structural beams 40, and brackets 42 are attached to the preheater housing II] at diametrically spaced points. The brackets 42 have foot portions 43 resting on the top of the beams 40. The bracket feet 43 are provided with flat side faces 44 located in vertical planes parallel to a plane through the vertical axis of the preheater casing. At .each side of the foot 43 of each bracket 42 there is mounted a guide and restraining block 46 which is secured to the beam 40 by bolts 41. The blocks 46 have side faces 48 opposite the side faces 44 of the bracket feet 43 which also are flat and parallel to the plane through the vertical axis of the vessel housing. The blocks 46 may be spaced slightly from the faces 44 on the feet of bracket 43 in order to provide for an amount of lateral movement.

With the arrangement described it is apparent that upon expansion of the heater housing and the duct Work due to heating, relative movement may occur with respect to supporting beams 40 as the bracket feet 43 slide on the tops of the beams 40 and between the blocks 46. Consequently although the supporting structure consisting of the beams 40 may not be heated to the same degree as the preheater housing I0 and duct work the resultant unequal expansion does not result in placing undue strain upon either the air preheater housing or the supporting framework.

What I claim is:

In an air preheater or the like having a housing provided with a pair of footed brackets diametrically located thereon and having fiat vertical side faces parallel to a plane through the vertical axis of said housing and resting freely on horizontally disposed supports adjacent opposite sides of said housing; guide blocks disposed at each side of the bracket feet and having vertically disposed faces on the sides facing said feet positioned closely adjacent the side faces of the bracket feet for restraining lateral movement of the latter relatively to said blocks.

\ PER HILMER KARLSSON. 

